House rejects GOP funding plan backed by Trump
Without a deal, shutdown hits at midnight tonight
Also in today’s edition of ‘Regular Order’ for December 20, 2024:
38 Republicans defy Trump in House vote.
Some GOP lawmakers favor shutdown - for a month.
Social Security bill advances again in Senate.
THE 118TH. This Congress started on a bizarre note with an extended fight among Republicans over who should be Speaker of the House. Nine months later, the GOP tossed out their own Speaker. And now, the 118th Congress - maybe the most dysfunctional in U.S. history - is ending with the threat of a government shutdown starting at midnight tonight.
PLAN B. A day after a bipartisan short-term funding bill collapsed, Republicans tried to forge ahead with their own temporary funding plan for Uncle Sam. But the vote on the slimmed-down bill wasn’t even close. 38 Republicans voted ‘No’ as the GOP couldn’t even muster a majority, losing 174-235-1.
DEBT LIMIT. The surprise addition to this GOP bill was something President-elect Trump wanted - a two-year extension of the debt limit. That was unacceptable for many Republicans. "The debt ceiling on there, that's a problem," said Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC). "That's what blew it up."
JOHNSON. “We will regroup and come up with another solution,” Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters, after spending nearly an hour on the floor talking with fellow Republicans. Johnson blamed Democrats for voting against the plan - not mentioning the over three dozen GOP lawmakers who defied Trump and voted against it.
NO UNITY. The loss was yet another example in this Congress of how House Republicans cannot stick together on big fiscal matters. "We're only here because you guys can't agree amongst yourselves," Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-FL) said during debate. "Put on your big boy pants - pass your own bill."
COALITION. Because the GOP can't pass their own bill, the only way out is for the two parties to reach a deal. They had that earlier in the week, but President-elect Trump and billionaire Elon Musk helped torpedo that plan.
COMPROMISE. "You might have seen Speaker Johnson talking to people on his side of the aisle," said Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH), who voted 'Present.' "He needs to speak to people on our side of the aisle, and we need to have a bipartisan bill that meets the needs of the country."
TRUMP. A day after he helped to shoot down the bipartisan CR deal negotiated by the Speaker, Trump tried but failed to pressure Republicans into voting for the revised plan, which added a surprise item - the debt limit. But that was met with some rather pointed rebukes from his own party on Capitol Hill.
CHIPPED BEEF. “I am not going to raise or suspend the debt ceiling,” said Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX), who demanded ‘significant and real spending cuts.’ In a speech on the House floor, Roy lectured his GOP colleagues, accusing them of being ‘profoundly unserious about reducing deficits.’
MAR-A-LAGO. From Florida, Trump attacked Roy for not getting on board. “Chip Roy is just another ambitious guy, with no talent,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, as Trump said he would encourage a GOP primary challenge to Roy.
DEBT LIMIT. But Roy wasn’t alone. “I cannot support an unlimited 2-year debt limit increase without concrete spending cuts,” said Rep. Tom Tiffany (R-WI). “At some point, the debt and the deficits have got to matter,” said Rep. Bob Good (R-VA). “This is not why the American people gave us the majority.”
FORMER VEEP. Who defended Roy on Thursday? Trump's former Vice President, Mike Pence. "Chip Roy is one of the most principled conservatives in Washington D.C.," Pence tweeted. "We just can’t keep piling trillions in debt on our children and grandchildren."
CHILDHOOD CANCER. One item cut out in the CR that failed last night gave us a preview of next year’s budget fights. Democrats were livid that Republicans got rid of $190 million for pediatric cancer research. "They’re taking money from kids with cancer to fund tax cuts for Elon Musk, Donald Trump, and their billionaire friends," said Rep. Emmanuel Cleaver (D-MO).
MUSK. Democrats pinned the blame for this decision on Elon Musk and his fake Department of Government Efficiency - which will certainly be a target of Democrats in the months ahead. "The first casualty of DOGE: childhood cancer research," said Rep. Sara Jacobs (D-CA).
TAXES. Part two of that argument from Democrats is about taxes. "This is the agenda," said Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT). "Take money from the poor and the hungry and the sick in order to pave the way for a giant tax cut for billionaires and corporations."
POST MORTEM. It's easy to sit on the outside and criticize the process this week - but I still have no idea what Speaker Johnson was thinking when he dropped the original 1,547 page CR+ bill on the House. When Republicans took over the House last year, they vowed again and again not to produce a giant year-end spending package. That's pretty much what this was.
PORK. There really wasn't 'pork' in the first version, which I would define as local projects or local spending. But many voters define 'pork' as unrelated legislative items - so they were outraged by all of the non-CR and non-disaster relief items stuffed into the bill. That was very obvious on social media.
HORSE TRADING. Why were there provisions on a football stadium in Washington, D.C., or transparency for hotel fees and ticket fees, or the extra money for economic aid for farmers? That was the price to win over votes.
PAY HIKE. In hindsight, adding a pay raise for Congress was really dumb. While I do think it's wrong Congress has gone 15 years without a raise, this was not the right time or the right bill to try to fix that. All it did was create controversy - and allow Elon Musk to spread disinformation.
WHAT'S NEXT. So where is the sweet spot where a deal can be made? You might laugh, but it's probably a bill which is closer to the original CR+ measure - with the two-year extension of the debt limit added in. I bet that's where things are heading, though there could be a shutdown in the interim.
NOTABLE. This week marks four years for my Regular Order newsletter. If you have been with me the whole way, I want to thank you very much for your support. I thoroughly enjoy covering the machinations of Capitol Hill and I hope it comes through in my reports. If you need a holiday idea - why not give the gift of straight news - and support independent journalism along the way!
SENATE. Senators of both parties sat and watched the show from across the Capitol yesterday, knowing they just had to wait for the House to figure out some way forward. “Most people are waiting to see if the House can come together behind a plan,” said future Senate Majority Leader John Thune.
ACTION. Pleading for more aid to deal with damage from Hurricane Helene, Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) threatened to filibuster any plan that doesn’t provide aid for his state. "I'll use every tool available to block a CR that fails Western North Carolina communities in need of long-term certainty," Tillis said.
BIPARTISAN. GOP Senators acknowledged that the only answer is for the House to pass a bipartisan agreement and send that to the Senate. "When it gets over here, you need 60 of us," said Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC). "We have to have Democrats and Republicans."
SOCIAL SECURITY. There was other business in the Senate. Senators voted 73-23 last night to begin debate on a House-passed bill which helps public sector workers with pensions get more from the Social Security benefits.
BEHIND THE SCENES. The best two places to be as a reporter on Capitol Hill yesterday were just off the Capitol Rotunda. On the House side, reporters were crammed into the alcove outside Speaker Mike Johnson's office, while over on the Senate side, reporters were waiting for Vice President-elect JD Vance.
WALKING Q&A. Here's a quick video snippet of what it looks like when someone comes out of the Speaker's office while a big meeting is going on inside. Answering questions is Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD). You can see that you have to be a bit quick and nimble to navigate through the halls of the Capitol.
HALLWAYS. Over on the Senate side, I like to use a back hallway to get from our press gallery down to the Rotunda. But with Vance around, it’s jammed with Secret Service and Capitol Police. When I went through it yesterday, I felt like the guy who made a wrong turn and suddenly found himself driving into the CIA.
DEADLINE. It's now the Friday before Christmas. The usual game of Legislative Chicken has so far produced no headway. Government funding runs out at midnight tonight. Some Republicans said a shutdown would be just fine. “The government can shut down all the way until Jan 20th as far as I’m concerned,” said Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA).
HISTORY. Frankly, when it comes to GOP lawmakers calling for a government shutdown - it makes my head hurt. I've seen way too many of these, as history shows clearly that Republicans don't win. Let’s review three of them:
1995. Speaker Gingrich tried to use a partial government shutdown to extract spending cuts from President Clinton. It failed after 21 days.
2013. Republicans tried to use a government shutdown to get rid of the Obama health law. That failed after 16 days.
2018. Much of the government went dark for 35 days, as President Trump demanded more money for his border wall. He didn’t get it.
SHUT IT DOWN. The GOP thought process - which I have never understood - is that a government shutdown will so punish programs of interest to liberals that Democrats will come crawling back on their hands and knees, and agree to major spending cuts in order to reopen the federal government.
GOP INFIGHTING. Making it even less likely that a shutdown would work is the current state of affairs among Republicans in the House. They can’t govern right now. And there is absolutely no reason to think that a badly fractured House GOP would unify around a shutdown fight.
JANUARY 6. One House Democrat who did not run for reelection noted the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol by Trump supporters in his final speech on the House floor. Rep. Dan Kildee (D-MI) said the events of that day made it difficult for him to engage with certain GOP lawmakers. “It’s been a challenge,” Kildee said.
KILDEE. “I still remember the chair I sat in and the wall I hid myself behind on Jan. 6,” Kildee said from the Well of the House. “Some of the people I share this chamber with contributed to the necessary precondition for that attack,” Kildee added. “I have not been able to look at them the same.”
RAP SHEET. A California man who was one of the first people to break through police lines outside the Capitol on Jan. 6 has been arrested. Shane Miller helped topple bike rack barricades which enabled Trump supporters to overrun police, injuring one officer. That allowed crowds to surge towards the Capitol.
TIMING. I can’t tell you how many times people make the false claim that peaceful rioters were attacked by police on Jan. 6. Miller and others pushed through police lines around 12:50 pm - almost 90 minutes before windows were broken and the Capitol was breached by a mob.
MUSE OF HISTORY. December 20, 1860. As South Carolina seceded on this date, the Senate set up a special panel - the 'Committee of Thirteen' - to save the Union. "I believe this country is in danger," said Sen. Paul Douglas of Illinois. "I believe there must be conciliation and concession, or civil war." One Senator immediately asked to be taken off the committee - Sen. Jefferson Davis of Mississippi. Two months later, he was the President of the Confederate States.
LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM:
The House convenes at 9 am.
The Senate meets at 10 am.
Follow me on Twitter @jamiedupree.
Email me at jamiedupree@substack.com
If you want to say ‘thanks’ - you can buy me a cup of coffee.
So Representative Roy & VP Pence and all the Republicans, many who say: run the Government like a business, refuse to even consider: Revenue Increases as a legitimate alternative. Tax Increases can REDUCE our deficits
Wow, what a mess. Thank you for the dogged coverage, Mr. Dupree. What was most fascinating to me about the CR votes — Elon Musk had more juice with lawmakers than the president-elect. Turns out, a measly $277 mil can buy an immigrant billionaire a shadow presidency. In comparison, Twitter set him back $44 billion.